Extracting Rules from Event Data for Study Planning

In this study, we examine how event data from campus management systems can be used to analyze the study paths of higher education students. The main goal is to offer valuable guidance for their study planning. We employ process and data mining techniques to explore the impact of sequences of taken courses on academic success. Through the use of decision tree models, we generate data-driven recommendations in the form of rules for study planning and compare them to the recommended study plan. The evaluation focuses on RWTH Aachen University computer science bachelor program students and demonstrates that the proposed course sequence features effectively explain academic performance measures. Furthermore, the findings suggest avenues for developing more adaptable study plans.

Multi-Valued Partial Order Plans in Numeric Planning

Many planning formalisms allow for mixing numeric with Boolean effects. However, most of these formalisms are undecidable. In this paper, we will analyze possible causes for this undecidability by studying the number of different occurrences of actions, an approach that proved useful for metric fluents before. We will start by reformulating a numeric planning problem known as restricted tasks as a search problem. We will then show how an NP-complete fragment of numeric planning can be found by using heuristics. To achieve this, we will develop the idea of multi-valued partial order plans, a least committing compact representation for (sequential and parallel) plans. Finally, we will study optimization techniques for this representation to incorporate soft preconditions.

A Combined Approach of Process Mining and Rule-based AI for Study Planning and Monitoring in Higher Education

This paper presents an approach of using methods of process mining and rule-based artificial intelligence to analyze and understand study paths of students based on campus management system data and study program models. Process mining techniques are used to characterize successful study paths, as well as to detect and visualize deviations from expected plans. These insights are combined with recommendations and requirements of the corresponding study programs extracted from examination regulations. Here, event calculus and answer set programming are used to provide models of the study programs which support planning and conformance checking while providing feedback on possible study plan violations. In its combination, process mining and rule-based artificial intelligence are used to support study planning and monitoring by deriving rules and recommendations for guiding students to more suitable study paths with higher success rates. Two applications will be implemented, one for students and one for study program designers.